Mr. Hydrangea and I had discussed a few details about our wedding before we were engaged, including the fact that we would like to get married at my family church, St. Paul’s Lutheran Church in Massillon. My grandparents, parents, and both of my sisters were married there, and we wanted to continue the tradition. That was the easy decision. Then we moved on to determining the perfect reception venue, which proved to be more difficult than we ever would’ve anticipated.

Our Ceremony Location - St. Paul's Lutheran Church, Massillon, Ohio

We looked at a variety of venues, from vineyards, to barns, banquet halls, and a few golf courses. We ran in to a few unexpected problems along the way. We quickly found that what looked good on paper, didn’t always match what looked good in person. We also learned that there are a lot of people planning November 2014 weddings. At least two venues were booked solid through November 2014 (for Saturdays) and many others had very few dates available. We literally walked in to an office to look at available dates as the couple that booked our date was walking out. We weren’t sold on the venue at the time, but by the time we go to it, it wasn’t even an option!

We also found that many venues are simply not an option in November due to the colder weather. We checked out a beautiful vineyard in North Canton, Ohio, only to learn that the pavilion we wanted to rent wasn’t an option in the colder months of the year, including November. We were also told by every golf course that we contacted that they would not be willing to hold a wedding in a tent any later than early October.

After considering what seems like 500 venues, the process was becoming frustrating and overwhelming. Mr. Hydrangea and I sat down and really talked about what we wanted in a venue. We decided on three key attributes to look for in a reception space: 1) enough space for our growing guest list, 2) close proximity to our ceremony location, and 3) a blank canvas to decorate as we wish (I love to DIY, as you know!). After making our list of must-haves, we were able to narrow down on our options much more easily. Just days later we decided on the perfect reception venue. The Santa Maria Ballroom at the Massillon Knights of Columbus was the closest we had come to a blank canvas, where My. Hydrangea’s mother and I could get crafy and make it our own. The K of C is also literally up the street from our church AND it holds up to 500 people! And so it was decided – Knights of Columbus it is!

The Santa Maria Ballroom at the Massillon Knights of Columbus

I am beyond releived to have made a decision about our venue and am hopeful that when all is said and done, I can say that the venue search was the most stressful aspect of planning our wedding.

I think one of the most stressful things that I had to plan when it came to our wedding was picking out the songs! When I look back at it now, it wasn’t really too bad but at the time I was so stressed! Trying to pick out the right songs for 1st dance, entrances, etc. can be a bit time consuming!